ABSTRACT
This book is a critical inquiry into the present-day process of globalization. The inquiry is guided by an interdisciplinary perspective, in which the historical is central. It is also guided by the desire for impartial scholarship and empirical research, which is then connected to theory. Such a stance generally is antagonistic to a passionate partisan position, but here I am conjoining the two. I do so for two reasons: scholarship that pretends to be without passion is a charade-the passion exists although it may be carefully concealed from both the reader and the scholar him/herself. And, second, I believe that our understanding and actions-that of leaders and general public alike-today are sadly out of joint with the process of globalization taking place, with dire consequences as a result.
